HIDDEN deep in the Himalayan forest is one of the world’s last truly nomadic tribes - and they are fighting pressure to move into permanent settlements and abandon their way of life.

The Raute tribe lives as hunter-gatherers and eat the meat of langur and macaque monkeys - a controversial choice in the Hindu-dominated country of Nepal, where monkeys are considered to be the reincarnation of the God Hanuman.

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Children of the secretive and nomadic Raute tribe

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Life is hard for the tribe, but they have bitterly opposed integration into wider Nepalese society

With the assistance of a local journalist, Danish photographer Jan Møller Hansen spent three days in January 2016 travelling from Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu into a remote forest in Accham District, Nepal to document the isolated group - who call themselves the Kings of the Forest.

The Copenhagen-based photographer said: "The Rautes want to get along with everybody, but they are afraid of attending school and settling in villages.

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The proud people fear they will become second-class citizens under Nepal's restrictive caste system

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Each time one of the Raute die they move the entire camp to escape spirits

"They have their own and completely distinct ethnic identity, but have also become part of a stigmatised underclass in the larger Nepalese society.

"The Rautes themselves claim that they have royal ancestors and have high-caste status. This is their way of dealing with the strong and persistent efforts of villagers to assimilate them.

"Everything they obtain from the forests, villages and markets they will share in the large group. The Rautes do not accumulate any kind of property or material wealthy. They only own what they can carry on their back from one forest camp to another."

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The photographer did not wish to romanticise the people's harsh lives

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The Raute call themselves the Kings of the Forest

Migrating between 300 and 3,000 metre altitudes, the Raute people move according to seasons, staying at high altitudes during the monsoon season and transitioning to lower subtropical forests during the dryer winters.

They will also vacate a camp whenever a member dies to avoid bad spirits, but not before burying their dead in an upright position and piercing their skull to allow their spirit to be released into heaven.

When Jan visited the group there were only 156 of the nomadic group left, as many other Rautes have been resettled by the Nepalese government.

Consequently the the tribe is extremely wary of outsiders and none are permitted to sleep inside the camp or accompany them on hunting trips, - even accessing the camp involves long negotiations.

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They eat the meat of langur and macaque monkeys

Firstly the photographer had some tense negotiations with the tribe Headman, Mayn Bahadur Kalyal and his wife, who asked him to buy them a large rooster in return for accessing their camp.

He said: "You cannot visit the Rautes without providing something to the community. This is very much about reciprocity. You give and take.

"I had also brought a book about the Rautes written by an American anthropologist. It turned out that the man pictured on the front page of the book was the late father of the Headman’s wife.

"She had never seen the photo and she was very moved seeing it."

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The tribe stays deep in the Himalayan forest

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The Raute tribe has no permanent home

During his visit to the camp Jan was also escorted out to negotiate more offerings with the senior headman, which ultimately made the trip his most expensive photography expedition to date. He parted with six packs of cigarettes, two large packets of tobacco, oranges, 55 hats, a big box of biscuits, a cockerel and money towards the purchase of five goats.

As the tribe is further exposed to the outside world they face a growing list of dangers, including the deforestation, environmental degradation, water insecurity, a decline in biodiversity, population encroachment by settlers and potential resettlement imposed by the Government of Nepal.

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The Raute have their own religion and worship a sun god

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The tribe cooks indoors, which can cause major health problems

Despite the gradual encroachment of settlers, the Raute people have no interest in assimilating with the outside world or engaging in Nepal’s most common religion - Hinduism.

Jan said: "The Rautes respect other religions and beliefs but they insist on keeping their own. They do not want to assimilate into the Nepalese society and despite being under great pressure for many years, they have managed to keep their own identity and culture.

"They have no written history and claim to be unaware of their ancestral heritage more than four generations back."

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The photographer had to but the tribe gifts for access to their inner lives

Instead the remote tribe believe in a sun god known as Berh - who represents eternity - and regard themselves as children of the sun god and see the stars as God’s temples.

They also worship the moon and rely on their Shaman to reach out to deities and spirits.

Jan said: "The Rautes respect religions and beliefs but they insist on keeping their own. They do not want to assimilate into the Nepalese society and despite being under great pressure for many years, they have managed to keep their own identity and culture."

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They have no written history and claim to be unaware of their ancestral heritage more than four generations back

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The Raute have managed to keep their own identity and culture

While befriending the Raute people with basic Nepali - they have their own language called Kamchi - Jan was struck by their endurance and unwavering dedication to their lifestyle.

He said: "All over the world you see that indigenous people and their cultures are disappearing. We are losing so much in terms of cultural diversity when unique and colourful people, religions, beliefs and traditions disappear. I don’t think that we realise what’s going on with global development.

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Jan Møller Hansen was struck by their endurance and faith in their own culture

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Many of the Raute people have been resettled by the Government of Nepal

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The Raute worship a sun god and believe themselves to be his children

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They call themselves the Kings of the Forest

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The tribe were in a remote forest in the Accham District

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Nepal is mainly Hindu, but the tribe has never adopted the faith

"I just hope that people appreciate that people can be different and live different lives. For some people this is still possible.

"It is tough and harsh to live like the Rautes and I don’t want to romanticise or ignore the challenges that they face in their everyday life, but respect for people and different cultures is important.

"That’s what I want to pass on to the viewers who see my images."

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